1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to theft prevention devices for vehicles. More particularly, the present invention is an anti-theft device for pedal operated vehicles which operates by locking and preventing the actuation of the pedal.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Vehicle theft is a major problem in the automobile industry. There are many types of anti-theft devices for vehicles. Most cars have ignition locks and steering wheel locks as standard features. Another common anti-theft apparatus is an alarm which makes loud noises to attract attention to a vehicle being entered unlawfully. Alarms are popular options selected by most car owners, and many cars come with an alarm as a standard feature. However, it is possible to circumvent such features as indicated by the high rate of theft for cars having these common devices.
Another popular anti-theft device is an elongated rod for attachment to a steering wheel of a vehicle such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,283 issued to Chen commonly known as THE CLUB(copyright), which operates by making steering impossible. Such a device can be circumvented by cutting or removing the steering wheel.
Another form of theft prevention device is a tracking device which can be concealed in an automobile. When a car is reported stolen, police can activate the tracking signal to locate the car. A disadvantage is that this device does not prevent the car from being stolen in the first place. It only serves as a deterrent to would be car thieves who fear being tracked down by police. However, car thieves who plan to quickly remove parts from a vehicle can simply steal and abandon the vehicle before police can locate them.
There are also theft prevention devices that operate by locking either the gas or brake pedal. Several prior art perform by locking the brakes through offering a means of locking up hydraulic fluid to the wheel cylinders which activate the brakes of a vehicle as exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,040,675 and 5,431,487. Others operate by directly placing a locking mechanism around the pedals as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,493,198 issued to Brown which teaches first and second stop bodies arranged to clamp around the lever of a pedal of a vehicle to prevent actuation of the pedal. Locking mechanisms such as the one taught by Brown can be inconvenient in that a user has to manually reach down under the dashboard to the pedals of the vehicle to attach and remove the devices.
There are a substantial variety of vehicle theft prevention devices in the prior art; however, none teaches an anti-theft device like the present invention.
A primary object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle theft prevention device which is reliable.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle theft prevention device which is easy to operate.
The present invention is an anti-theft device for a pedal operated vehicle having a pedal lever. The device includes a housing member which can be adapted to be secured to an interior of a vehicle near the pedal lever. The housing member has a first bore in which a rod is positioned to move from a retracted position to an extended position. When the rod is in the extended position, it extends outwardly from the housing member for a predetermined distance and engages the pedal lever. A pin, the movement of which is controlled by an electrical motor, engages the rod in the extended position to keep it in that position, and this prevents actuation of the pedal lever. In this position, the pedal lever cannot be pressed down to operate the vehicle. The normal operation of the pedal lever is restored when the pin disengages the rod enabling the rod to freely retract into the first bore of the housing member. The movement of the rod is triggered by either air from an air compressor or by the force of a solenoid located behind the rod.